The crew will now travel for two days before docking at the space station.

Whitson, who will celebrate her 57th birthday in February, has now become the oldest woman in space, adding to her long list of barrier-breaking records.

This will be the third International Space Station mission for Whitson, an Iowa-born biochemist, and her second stint as commander. She already has spent 377 days in space and performed multiple spacewalks. Her upcoming six-month mission should push her beyond 534 days in space, the US record set in September by 58-year-old astronaut Jeffrey Williams.

Whitson is riding the Soyuz with the 45-year-old experienced Russian cosmonaut and the 38-year-old French astronaut, who is making his maiden flight into space. They will join an American and two Russians at the orbiting lab who have worked at the station since October.